1200 Calories a day plus workout

fitby26

If I workout should i still only eat 1200 calories? Or can i increase my calories for the day and still lose weight?

startingeasyjen

I am on 1200 cals a day even when i workout, it will bring your deficit up and loose more... if you dont get too hungry

birdieaz

Whatever calories are shown in your "daily calories consumed goal is"...That is what you should see in your NET.
So yes, you can absolutely eat back your exercise calories.

miadhail

I have that same question too.. Still so new here. A little confused.. So, I am maintaining 1200 calories... but, when I exercise, it deducts from the calories I took in. Since to lose weight you need a calorie deficit, it means that I don't maintain 1200 calories right (like say, in total food is 800 cal, but i exercised lost 500 cal, does that mean I can still consume 800 more cals to make it 1200 or just 400 for the initial 1200) ?

zechks

If I workout should i still only eat 1200 calories? Or can i increase my calories for the day and still lose weight?

Check your BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) then adjust from there. IMO, You may want to add some more cals when you workout, you need the extra energy, going too low on cals will slow down metabolism and makes it harder for your body to lose bodyfat.

happythermia

Eat those calories back. MFP already has the deficit figured in, so the goal is to net 1200 :-)

This is what I've been doing and so far, so good~

dodihere

I usually don't eat back my calories. But I don't kill myself to stay within 1200 either. So if you workout everyday and burn 400 - 800 - you don't need to worry about a few extra 100 calories.

Beezil

Definitely try to NET 1200 calories a day, which means yes, you should eat the extra calories you get from exercise. Don't starve those muscles! You wanna look tight and lean right? Not flabby and squishy!

xoalyssax07

it all depends on how you feel - some people can eat all their exercise calories and loose weight. For me, I can't loose weight eating them all. I need a calorie defecit in my diet. Try eating say half of your exercise calories and see how you feel. If you're starving, eat more. If you aren't loosing as much weight as you wanted to (1-2 pounds a week) cut out the exercise calories!

Hope this helps!

Misslisat

MFP has already figured in your deficit by how you responded to your setup questions (daily activity levels). If you are set at 1200 and then burn 500 during a workout, you should eat a good portion (or at least some) of those calories back. If you don't, that means your body is going on just 700 calories of fuel and that is not enough! You may see a quick and sometimes dramatic drop in weight 'at first', but trust me, you're not losing fat.

tnqnt

I suggest you eat your calories back. MFP has built in weight loss with the calories they expect you to eat (this is based on what you put in your settings)..... I have heard of too many people who don't eat their calories back and then just get sick.
You can be a little under, sure, but if you work out, say 500 cals and only eat 1200, that means you only really ate 700 calories which is much too low.

morgansmom02

Wow lots of bad advice here.

miadhail

Thanks guys, I'm glad I made sense in the initial post. Haha. It makes sense. It is just that I already feel full without reaching that net 1200 a day when I exercise everyday. I guess rule of thumb is to eat when hungry.. healthily of course.. AND within my net 1200 cal.

LorinaLynn

Eat most of them, as long as you're fairly confident your calorie burns are accurate. And sometimes the only way to tell if your burns are accurate is through trial and error.

But yes, you're supposed to eat them.

eduardoschoen

My nutritionist and weight loss coach are ok with me netting my calories consumes against the custom goals they established for me in MFP. They also did metabolic testing to establish my true basal metabolic rate and I wear a heart rate monitor custom configured to data obtained through metabolic testing.

I have been very successful in the 2-3 weeks I have been using MFP with the goals my coach, trainers, and nutritionist established for me.

Good luck with your goals. I wish you the best.

gullee

Here's a typical day for me:

Goal: 1900

Eat: 2500
Exercise: 600
Net intake: 2500 - 600 = 1900

zaph0d

When it says "You have ____ calories remaining", it means you have that many calories remaining. It's straightforward.

gshoemaker06

It depends what you set your activity style as. If you set it as active due to your exercising then I would not eat back your calories. However, I set mine for sedentary since I have a desk job and did not account for me lifting/running. Therefore I do eat back my calories.

kstep88

Right now I have my goal set to 1200 calories because I am cleaning up my diet. If I exercise, I eat them back (or at least most). When my goal is set higher, I don't eat them back (or maybe half). It really depends, but I try to keep my NET in a safe zone. You will lose weight quickly, but you can gain it back even quicker. I try to keep it all moderate. I've lost 38 pounds this way. We are all so different, it varies. At the end of the day, just stay healthy.

<--- my photo is from right when I started mfp. Quite different now.

Misslisat

I have that same question too.. Still so new here. A little confused.. So, I am maintaining 1200 calories... but, when I exercise, it deducts from the calories I took in. Since to lose weight you need a calorie deficit, it means that I don't maintain 1200 calories right (like say, in total food is 800 cal, but i exercised lost 500 cal, does that mean I can still consume 800 more cals to make it 1200 or just 400 for the initial 1200) ?

You do not want to have a deficit of only 800 caloires. You need to eat those calories to fuel your body.

VeganZombie13

I workout everyday and burn 1200 to 1300 calories a day. & I'm eating 1500 to 1600 calories a day and lose 2 or 4lbs a week.. So I say Don't be afraid of food lol... eat healthy..

Tank_Girl

Im struggling to eat 1200 calories without some kind of junk and im not hungry... And this is before exercise! Some days like today I manage to eat over 1200 cals but im struggling most days

miadhail

Thank you Makes alot of sense. It is afterall straightforward. Just wanted to make sure as well. Before I embarked on this journey, I knew I was barely making 1200 cals. hence my problem is really my slowed metabolism. I really wanna push that back up again. Thus I am making sure my body gets enough cals and knows that it is still getting food so it won't store them fats. lol. Thanks again all

Misslisat

Wow lots of bad advice here.

Hmm - so why don't you elaborate, then, if you know all the right answers?

Misslisat

Im struggling to eat 1200 calories without some kind of junk and im not hungry... And this is before exercise! Some days like today I manage to eat over 1200 cals but im struggling most days

I'm not sure how you're surviving on such low calories. Your body won't like that for very long.

ttroone10

I started with MFP recently and was not eating back my calories. I read how important it was to keep your body fueled so I started eating back my exercise calories. I feel better, and I can't believe I lost weight. So it is turning exercise into a great motivator for me.

VeganZombie13

Wow lots of bad advice here.

Hmm - so why don't you elaborate, then, if you know all the right answers?

^^Agree!

mfpcopine

If I workout should i still only eat 1200 calories? Or can i increase my calories for the day and still lose weight?

You can increase your calories, but you will lose weight more slowly, and if you inadvertently eliminate your deficit you won't lose weight at all.

Unless you're hungry or feel unwell, I would stick to 1,200, do your workouts, and see how things go for the next few weeks.

Tank_Girl

Im struggling to eat 1200 calories without some kind of junk and im not hungry... And this is before exercise! Some days like today I manage to eat over 1200 cals but im struggling most days

I'm not sure how you're surviving on such low calories. Your body won't like that for very long.

I dont know how many cals I was consuming before I started keeping track but I somehow managed to get to 196lb
The only thing ive changed is im drinking less tea, more water and fruit juice and ive started exercising
And ive stopped drinking alcohol to excess

suelegal

Wow lots of bad advice here.

Really? And so you say that but don't offer your good advice?

nicolars1977

i beleive in second opinions so i got three lol, the personal trainers i consulted with said the same thing, eat back the calories or just eat some depending how hungry you are.